Help Them Grow, Let Them Go
by hmweasley
Summary: Snapshots of Andromeda and Teddy's life together as Teddy grows up.


**Written for Assignment 12 at the Hogwarts Challenges and Assignments forum: Agricultural Studies task 1: growing crops - Write about watching something, or someone, grow.**

**Content Notice: Reference to canonical character deaths.**

**Word count: 2,778**

* * *

Teddy began to fuss, prompting Andromeda to spring into action. She lifted the infant to her shoulder, rubbing his back as she cooed to him. She knew what he wanted: his mother or father. She couldn't give him either one.

As she murmured sweet words in the baby's ear, she tried not to think about the battle her daughter and son-in-law were fighting. She hadn't heard from anyone since Tonks had left Teddy with her, and she knew that Teddy sensed her anxiety, which fueled his crying.

The battle raging at Hogwarts would be the last of the war. Though Andromeda knew little, she knew Harry and Voldemort were both there, ready to face each other. If Tonks and Remus survived the fight, her family would finally be safe.

When Teddy quieted, Andromeda lowered him from her shoulder to cradle him in her arms. He looked peaceful in his sleep. She leaned down and placed a gentle kiss to the top of his head. He smelled just as Tonks had at his age, and the scent brought her a small sense of comfort despite the situation.

The loss of her husband was fresh in her heart, and she couldn't guarantee that she or Teddy would see his parents again. Andromeda considered the possibilities of their deaths as if such a scenario was merely hypothetical. She'd faced so much loss in her life that she found herself more resigned than frightened.

Teddy, however, had never lost a soul. If his parents didn't come back, he would have no idea what to think of it, and that almost hurt her more than the thought of losing her daughter.

Even as he slept, Andromeda couldn't bear to put Teddy down. She kept him close to her chest long after the messengers arrived at her door.

* * *

Andromeda watched Teddy run around with the local Muggle children at the park. One child said something that made Teddy's face scrunch into a frown, and Andromeda fought against her urge to rush over and see what was the matter.

While Tonks was growing up, Andromeda had allowed her quite a bit of freedom, but she struggled to do the same with Teddy. Harm could befall him at any moment if she let him wander too far, but she fought against the instinct to keep him close, reminding herself daily that she'd always believed children needed space to make mistakes on their own.

Teddy scurried away from the other children. Andromeda watched intently as he approached the bench where she sat. She lowered the book she was pretending to read as he dropped down beside her and picked up the thermos of water they'd packed for their trip to the park.

"Is something the matter?" Andromeda asked once he finished his drink.

She glanced at the Muggle children, who were laughing with each other and not paying attention to Teddy's sudden disappearance.

Teddy shrugged, a small frown wrinkling his forehead. He was watching the children, too, as he spoke.

"They asked about my parents. I said I live with my grandma, and they said sorry."

Andromeda's stomach twisted. It had never occurred to her that children might ask such things. Pureblood children were taught from a young age not to stick their noses in other families' business that way. Even after years of living on the fringes of Muggle society, she couldn't understand their customs in the way her husband had.

"Let me talk with their parents," she said, standing from the bench and scanning the area for the adults who were responsible for the children in question.

A small hand grabbing onto her wrist distracted her from her search.

"No," Teddy whined, his eyes wide. "Please don't."

Andromeda pressed her lips together but sat back down, taking Teddy's small hand in both of her own.

"I don't understand," Teddy said, glancing at the children again. One child's sharp, playful scream pierced through the air. "They asked me if I cried, but I'm not sad."

Andromeda's heart tightened.

"What do you mean?" she asked, bending down to his eye level.

"Anna said she'd cry if she lost her mummy or daddy, but I'm not crying. They said it's weird."

Teddy's face scrunched up in confusion, which would have been adorable if Andromeda weren't worried.

"Am I meant to be sad?" he asked, staring at his grandmother with curious, trusting eyes.

No matter how many times Teddy changed his hair colour in a given day, he always kept his eyes the same dark brown shade that Tonks had favoured. Andromeda focused on them as she gripped his shoulders.

"You're allowed to feel however you feel," she said slowly, hoping he couldn't hear her voice tremble.

He gave her a small smile and hugged her. Andromeda closed her eyes, soaking in the embrace. He'd become much more active over the past year than he'd been in the past, which had led to physical affection being less common between them.

"Thanks, Grandma," he said as he pulled away.

He ran back to the other kids without saying anything else, looking as content as he always was. Andromeda sucked in a shaky breath as she watched him go. Perhaps she felt sad enough for the both of them.

* * *

Andromeda reached out to straighten the collar of Teddy's shirt, allowing herself a small smile when he tried to squirm away from her grip.

"Grandma," he whined, pushing her hands away. "I'm fine."

"I can't have my grandson looking like a slob on his first day of school," she joked before patting him on the shoulder and giving up on straightening his new uniform any further.

Her smile turned sad as she looked at him.

"Grandma," Teddy whined again, cringing at the way she looked at him. He turned to collect his backpack, slinging it over his shoulder. "School's just across town. I'm not going to Hogwarts."

Andromeda hummed in agreement, though that was part of the problem. When the time came to send Teddy to Hogwarts, at least she would know what she was sending him to. The Muggle primary school he'd begged to attend with his friends from town was different. Tonks had never had any interest in going, so Andromeda had completed her basic schooling at home like most wizarding parents. She didn't have the slightest idea what Muggles did at school or what they were taught beyond reading and simple arithmetic.

Harry had admitted that he was treated horribly at his Muggle school, and though he had insisted that was because of his cousin, not because they'd sensed he was different on their own, it left a sour taste in the back of Andromeda's throat at the possibility of the same happening to Teddy.

Teddy was oblivious to the mental war Andromeda was fighting with herself as he shook with excitement at the door of the house. Andromeda reached out to adjust his tie once more before giving in to her emotions and wrapping her arms around him in a hug.

"Go on then," she said, struggling to control the tremble in her voice as she opened the door and ushered him out before she stopped herself. "It wouldn't do to be late on your first day."

Teddy gave her another brief hug before disappearing out the door. She watched him bound down the street with a smile.

* * *

Andromeda knew something was wrong the minute Teddy stepped through the fireplace. Teddy was always cheerful after returning from Harry's. That had become especially true since little James was born. Teddy loved nothing more than to shower attention on the baby.

On that particular day, however, his face was set in a frown, and his hair was the same mousy brown that had always told Andromeda when Tonks was upset. When he smiled in greeting, the expression didn't match the emotion in his eyes.

"What's wrong?" Andromeda asked, stepping in front of him before he disappeared into his room. "Did something happen?"

Teddy shifted from one foot to the other, not making eye contact. With a sigh, he accepted that his grandmother wasn't going to let it go and sat down on the sofa, still looking at the floor instead of her.

Andromeda sat across from him, perching on the edge of the chair and clutching her hands together in her lap.

"It's nothing," Teddy said. "It's just…"

He trailed off, fiddling with his fingers.

"I went snooping around Grimmauld Place," he admitted.

Andromeda's frown deepened. Her family's old house had been cleaned out in the years since Harry had taken possession of it, but she wouldn't have been surprised if her ancestors had hidden something well enough for it to survive their efforts. At least Teddy didn't appear injured. They'd found plenty of objects capable of defending themselves.

"What did you find?" she asked.

"Nothing," Teddy said as if he could make the lie work after what he'd already admitted. The attempt crumbled a second later. "The Black family tree is in the attic, and I wanted to look at it. I know you've said before that they're not really our family, but they're the closest thing we have, aren't they? Other than Harry and everyone, I guess. I wanted to see their names."

Andromeda's eyes widened. She'd known the Black family tapestry was in Grimmauld Place's attic. She'd been at the house when they'd finally removed it for the drawing room wall, after all, but she'd promptly forgotten about it once it was stored away. She'd never expected anyone to see it again in her lifetime.

"We share blood with them, yes," she said slowly. "But they're not your family, Teddy. Not really. Harry's your family. Ginny and James are your family. The people on that tapestry are not your family."

"You're on there though," Teddy said, sounding almost desperate for his grandmother to agree with him.

"I'm not," Andromeda said. "I was burnt off that tapestry a long time ago."

She'd seen the scorch marks for herself after the war, when Harry had recruited her help with cleaning up the old house. She'd hated how much it had hurt to see the evidence of her family's hatred for her.

"The people on that tree don't matter," she said icily. "Anyone worthy of being your family was burnt off it. The names that are still there belong to people who aren't worthy of being your relatives."

Teddy looked uncertain, but Andromeda's tone made it clear there was no room for arguing. He gave a short nod of his head and asked to be excused, not looking his grandmother in the eyes as he hurried to his room.

* * *

The moment Andromeda caught sight of Teddy in the crowd, tears pricked at her eyes. She blinked them away, determined not to lose her composure while standing on Platform 9 and ¾. Still, the second Teddy was in front of her, she wrapped him in a hug and held him close.

"I missed you too," he mumbled into her shoulder, though he did his best to add a hint of annoyance to his words.

Andromeda gave him one final squeeze before pulling away. She tried to straighten out his bright blue hair as he greeted Harry.

"How was Hogwarts?" she asked.

"It was great," he said, suddenly much more enthusiastic than he'd been minutes before. His gaze focused on Harry as if Andromeda wasn't even there. "My Defence class was amazing, Uncle Harry. Professor Harris is the best teacher. We have so much fun in her class. Maybe I'll become an Auror like you."

Andromeda smiled softly. The idea of Teddy becoming an Auror was less terrifying than the same decision had been when Tonks made it a decade and a half before, but she couldn't deny that it worried her.

She pushed it aside for the future. At the moment, she was glad to have Teddy back at home, even if it was only for a few months. Her mind was calmer than it had been since the Christmas holidays, and she wanted to focus on that for as long as possible.

* * *

Andromeda poked her head through Teddy's open bedroom door to find him hunched over his desk, quill in hand as he scratched at some parchment. She leaned against the doorframe without being noticed and took a moment to observe her grandson.

It was hard having him away at Hogwarts for most of the year. She didn't remember it being as hard when she'd sent Tonks off at the platform, but perhaps that was because the house hadn't been as empty then. For months at a time, she was left picturing him as he'd been when he left, only for him to come home having grown and changed in the time he was at school.

His hair was currently a bright shade of pink that reminded Andromeda of Tonks in a painful way. She noticed that he'd been favouring the colour since he'd returned home from his fourth year, and she hadn't found the courage to ask if it was because of the pictures he had of his mother.

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, Andromeda knocked against the door frame, startling Teddy from his writing. He looked up, his cheeks flushing a light pink that made Andromeda grin.

"What are you writing?" she asked, pushing off the door frame and stepping into the room.

"Nothing."

Teddy angled his body to block the parchment from view while trying to make the move appear natural. Andromeda's grin morphed into a smirk.

"Is it a letter?" she asked, already thinking of one person in particular he could be writing to. She'd seen the way he'd smiled at Victoire Weasley at King's Cross.

"Yes," Teddy stammered out, his eyes rapidly moving over the room without focusing on anything.

Andromeda nodded without saying anything. Teddy still wouldn't look her in the eyes. His gaze settled on his wardrobe door. Andromeda ruffled his hair, earning protests in response that made her laugh.

"I'll leave you alone," she promised, heading for the door.

She allowed herself one last look over her shoulder once she was standing in the hallway. Teddy had already turned back to his letter, a smile on his lips as he continued scribbling away.

Andromeda's heart tightened as she watched him go.

* * *

Teddy fiddled with the sleeves of his robes as he sat across from her. He wouldn't make eye contact with Andromeda, but she wasn't worried. She knew what he wanted to talk about, and though it was bittersweet, she couldn't help but feel fond as she watched him struggle to voice what he wanted to say.

Taking a deep breath, he straightened his shoulders and looked at her.

"I want to ask Victoire to marry me," he said, letting out a large exhale as soon as the words were out.

Andromeda's throat stung. Even as he fiddled with his sleeve, he looked like the adult she couldn't believe he'd become. She'd been waiting for this since Victoire had finished her last year at Hogwarts, but she still wasn't prepared for it. Part of her would always view Teddy as the little boy who she'd raised.

"That's wonderful," she said, choking back tears.

Teddy's eyes widened as he sensed her distress, and he pushed himself forward until he was perched on the very edge of the sofa, like he was going to lunge at her if any of her tears managed to fall.

"But I don't want to leave you," he blurted out, voice quivering as he spoke. "I don't want you to be alone in the house or to miss me…"

He trailed off, not knowing how to voice his feelings. Andromeda laughed, swiping at her eyes as she stood up and moved to sit beside him on the sofa. He sank into her embrace and rested his head on her shoulder.

"You've been at Hogwarts for most of the last nine years," she pointed out. "I'm used to having the house to myself, and at any rate, it's not your responsibility to worry about me like that."

Teddy lifted his head to give her a sceptical look.

"I'm serious," Andromeda pressed, patting the back of his hand. "You're going to marry Victoire because you want to, and I'll be happier for you than anyone else. Don't hold yourself back from being happy because you're worried for me, Teddy. As long as you're happy, I'll be fine."

Teddy smiled and wrapped her in a tight hug. Andromeda squeezed back, not sure when she would next get the opportunity to have him close. She would cherish the time that she got.


End file.
